Directed by Karel Zeman • 1958 • Czechoslovakia
Starring Lubor Tokoš, Arnošt Navrátil, František Šlégr
This eye-popping escapade revolves around a scientist and his doomsday machine—and the pirates who will stop at nothing to gain possession of it. Freely adapting the fiction of Jules Verne, and inspired by Victorian line engravings, Karel Zeman surrounds his actors with animated scenery of breathtaking intricacy and complexity, constructing an impossibly vivid proto-steampunk world. Released abroad at the turn of the 1960s, INVENTION FOR DESTRUCTION went on to become one of the most internationally successful Czechoslovak films of all time.
Made for the 1961 English-dubbed U.S. released of INVENTION FOR DESTRUCTION under the title THE FABULOUS WORLD OF JULES VERNE, this opening sequence features different credits and title design, along with a filmed introduction by broadcaster Hugh Downs.
In this conversation, filmed by the Criterion Collection in 2019, animator and visual-effects supervisor Phil Tippett and visual-effects artist Jim Aupperle discuss their appreciation for director Karel Zeman and his cinematic techniques.
This early short from 1945 showcases the technical skill, wit, and creativity of director Karel Zeman.
